Sand, Surf, and Stings
by TealcIsTheBomb
Summary: It's the annual SBPD beach party and everyone is having fun. Including Shawn until he meets a new friend- the Irakandji a rare but deadly jellyfish.    Takes place at the beginning of season 5.  NOW COMPLETE!
1. Good Times, Fun Times, Painful Times

_**"Whew. Today is a beautiful day in Santa Barbara and in due time too after Hurricane Xena every Santa Barbara-nite is soaking up the rays at the beach..."**_

*Click* "Come on _Gus_, quit listening to the radio. Everyone is waiting for us."

Gus looked over at his best friend in passenger side. Shawn was wearing his usual beach gear- board shorts, white undershirt, and sandals. He was digging around in the glove compartment and started to mutter under his breath.

"Shawn. Whatcha looking for?"

"Sunglasses Gus. I need my Ray Bans to protect my beautiful eyes. You don't want me getting wrinkles do you?"

Gus rolled his eyes and sighed at him. Quickly he reached out and grabbed the sunglasses that were sitting on top of Shawn's head, who just raised his eyebrows at them. "_Really Shawn_."

Shawn quickly grabbed them out his hand and put them on. "Let's go buddy!" He grabbed his towel and jumped out the Blueberry. He took off toward the beach where the annual SBPD beach party was being held. Gus was left to lug the fifty pounds of ice that Shawn had promised they would bring.

"Dammit Shawn!" The curse fell on mute ears seeing as Shawn was currently ogling Juliet O'Hara who was wearing an honest to goodness yellow polka-dot bikini. So Gus just gritted his teeth and continued his struggle.

"Heya Jules!" Shawn craned his neck to the side as she was bending over to lay out her towel. "What is up?"

Juliet smoothed out her towel and from the corner of her eyes she saw Shawn checking her out so she took an extra long time smoothing out her towel and stood up slowly. She went a special shopping trip to buy the bikini she was wearing just so she could torture Shawn. "Nothing much, debating whether or not I am going to join Buzz and his wife playing volleyball or sun bathe."

"Well-" his sentence was interrupted when Gus smacked him upside the head. Shawn spun and began smoothing and fiddling with his hair. "Gus! What was that for?"

Gus looked angry. "What do you _think?_ I had to drag the cooler all the way from the car to here. It has like fifty pounds of ice in it Shawn!"

"Oh Gus you are always talking about how you don't get enough exercise so I just helped out by not helping you."

"_Whatever _Shawn. I'm going to see what your dad and Lassie are cooking on the grill."

Shawn chuckled and went back to talk to Juliet but she had made up her mind and was playing volleyball. It appeared to be night shift versus day shift. Shawn decided to walk around and see just what this party had to offer. Several officers were chatting by a large table filled with all sorts of food, a few were dancing next to a boombox, some were next to the grill where his dad and Lassie were grilling up all sorts of chicken, hamburgers and fish. He strolled over to the group and the smell that wafted over made his mouth water.

"Dad! Lassie!" He stood in between the men and placed his hands on their shoulders.

Carlton tensed under the touch. "What do you want _Spencer?_"

"Weelllll." He leaned over and started eyeballing the array of food. "I was thinking two of everything but it looks so delish I may get three."

"Go away Spencer."

"What about you dad? You want me to leave too?"

"Yes I _do_."

Shawn got a fake hurt look about him and began his retreat. "Just tell me when it's ready. Gus! Join me!"

Gus shook his head. "Un-ugh I am going to be the sampler besides I'm still mad at you. Go find someone else to bother."

This time Shawn's feelings were a little hurt as his walked away from the trio. He didn't feel like dancing or playing volleyball and he most definitely wasn't going to try and small talk with people he barely knew so he decided to see if he could grab a board and go surfing. He was in luck some teens were surfing and had brought a board for a friend who didn't show so they let him borrow it.

Slowly he paddled out just enjoying the feel of the sun warmed water and the smell of the salt. Shawn had been surfing since he was fifteen the feeling of nature guiding your course as you just held on was something that always thrilled Shawn. Sitting on the board he soaked up some rays and waited for the next wave. As he felt the current shift he began his quick paddle to meet the wave, standing up on the board he felt the tell-tale rush that accompanied catching a big one. Idly he noticed that several officers were watching him a few pointing his direction even his dad watched for a second before tending the grill again.

Dodging in and out of the curl he was on top of the world but then he remembered he forgot one thing- the wax. His feet started to slip and he knew he was going to wipe out so acting quickly he jumped off the board to minimize the roll of his body. Coming up for air he saw that some of the onlookers had run in to the surf to see if he needed some help. He laughed as he walked toward the sand.

"Shawn! You ok."

Shawn saw the worried face of Juliet and smiled. "M'Fine Jules. The question is how does my hair look?"

Juliet just laughed and pushed against his chest before she walked away. Shawn waited till the concerned group broke up before he inspected the damage. He was going to have a bruise where the board hit him and he must have scraped his leg on something because it was on fire and there was a small welt on it. Other than that he was fine. He returned the board back to the teens who thought it was totally awesome the way he bit it and started to walk over to his towel. With each step the burn in his leg started to travel upward and his face had an uncomfortable burning feeling. _Forgot the sunscreen._ _Man_! Just when he thought he was going to collapse from the pain he reached his towel and laid down. _Maybe a quick nap and I'll feel better._

Under the shade of a giant umbrella Shawn fell asleep unknowing that they little welt on his leg was not caused by a scrape and by the end of the day he would be praying for death.


	2. Not Feeling So Hot While Feeling Hot

It was too hot outside Shawn's skin was on fire and he could feel the sweat pouring from his body. Slowly he opened his eyes and looked at his watch to see how long he was out. Only a half hour? He sat up and instantly regretted it when his stomach rolled violently. As quickly as he dared he stood up and stumbled toward the closest person to him.

"Lassie." He hated the way his voice cracked at his suddenly dry mouth.

Carlton looked at the psychic with disgust. "What do you _want _Spencer." He noticed that Shawn was swaying widely and sweating profusely.

_"Bathroom?"_

Carlton rolled his eyes and pointed toward the little building that contained showers and toilets. Shawn ambled toward the building without a further word leaving behind an amused Carlton who walked back over to the grill to help Henry finish.

"Where was Shawn off to in such a hurry?"

Carlton chuckled a bit. "Bathroom. Looks like he can't handle his alcohol ." Both men chuckled and took a swig out of their own beers.

OOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOO

Shawn's head was splitting in two and his back felt like someone had stabbed him with something sharp and pointy. As soon as he hit the tiny room he staggered to the sink where he began splashing his face and rubbing the cool water on his neck.

He sighed in relief but it was short lived the heat wasn't getting any better. _Why isn't anyone else this hot?_ He looked up in the mirror and let out a small yelp at his reflection his skin was beet red and the sweat was pouring off of him like a river. Slowly he touched his face and looked disbelievingly at his reflection the skin would blanch for a second under the pressure and just as quickly would turn back to the deep red.

"Holy Crap!"

He knew that there was no way he had gotten that much sun in the short amount of time he spent out in it, something else was going on he needed help. He turned quickly and found himself laying on the floor gasping from the pain.

"H-help." His voice was barely above a whisper and was growing hoarser by the second. Carefully and slowly he was able to get on all fours and started to crawl when he heard dripping. _Shower!_ He changed his direction and crawled toward the lone stall where people would rinse off the sand and salt from the day. _Just a few minutes and then I'll get help._ Reaching blindly he was able to turn on the ice cold spray and shivered violently as he laid under it_. Just a few minutes_. And for the second time that day Shawn fell asleep not knowing how much trouble he was in.

Gus, for once, was enjoying himself at a picnic that Shawn was at. He had sampled and gave a thumbs up to the grilling, played a little volleyball, and was now chatting up the hottie that worked the front desk at night.

"I _know_ how could they just do _that?_ Make Pluto not a planet."

"I know right." He grabbed two beers from a cooler and held one out to her which she accepted. "So are you seeing anyone?"

She giggled and brushed the stray blonde hairs from her face while she took a long drag from her beer. "No why? What do you have in mind?"

He just gave his best flirt chuckle and licked his lips to try and look sultry. "Well I was thinking-"

"Gus!"

He sighed and silently apologized to the hottie while turning around to see Juliet calling after him and jogged over to where she was.

"Have you seen Shawn? I was wanting to see if he wanted to play a game of volleyball."

Gus shook his head. "Sorry haven't seen him and I could almost care less he's not here ruining my mojo. So if you don't mind I am going to go back over there." He pointed at the beautiful woman and gave her a small wave which she returned. "And continue my conversation."

Juliet looked a little shocked at the anger but had to admit that Shawn did seem to ruin a lot of opportunities for Gus so she quickly smiled. "Well Trixie over there loves dogs, just a hint."

Gus' smile grew and he jogged back over toward Trixie to talk about all the work he does at the animal shelter on his days off.

Juliet just smiled to herself as Gus continued to flirt and decided to go look for Shawn where she was almost certain he would be, the food. She walked past the table that was filled with all sorts of goodies but didn't see any signs of the man. When she came up with nothing she headed toward the grill where she had seen him earlier.

"Carlton, Henry either of you seen Shawn?"

"Spencer? Oh about twenty minutes ago he went to the outhouse. Looked like he had too much to drink."

She scoffed. "He would get skunk drunk wouldn't he?"

"I don't know what you see in him O'Hara."

Juliet gaped at her partner. "I have no idea what you are talking about Carlton." She felt the heat rising to her face so she looked down at her feet and kicked at the sand a little. "How 'bout you Mr. Spencer?"

"Just saw him stumbling off toward the building. Damn kid should know that too much alcohol and sun don't mix."

Still looking down. "Thanks. Ummmm...I guess I'll go check on him and see if he is ok." Quickly she retreated toward the building preparing herself to seeing a intoxicated and possibly puking Shawn. If only that were the sight she saw when she entered the little building.

Shawn woke up choking and sputtering as the ice cold water pelted him. It no longer felt good as it did when he first got under the spray if anything it made his skin burn more. He rolled over and tried to get up on all fours again to go get help but halted when his stomach rolled again. Almost in slow motion he gagged and everything he had eaten or drank that day started to coat the floor of the shower. He almost collapsed in the putrid puddle but managed to roll over and flop just to the side of it.

"Help!" His voice was weaker than before and his head exploded in pain at the effort. He closed his eyes and tears leaked freely from them as he prayed for the pain to stop.


	3. Trust Me This Isn't What It Looks Like

**Disclaimer: I don't own this awesomeness and Forgot to mention earlier but this is taking place in the beginning of Season 5. So there will be some shules but not a whole lot.**

Juliet had already searched two out three of the stalls and was about to search the third one when she froze at the door. She was debating whether or not she should go in. _Will he be mad?_ Juliet had never seen Shawn drunk. Drinking? Yes. Drunk, no. She knew he never showed that side of him for a reason she was mildly afraid of what she might see.

"_Some-one. Help_!"

The whispered shout for help had her pushing all thoughts out of her mind and running into the little room. The shower was running and she could her someone gasping and sputtering. Wishing she had her gun she walked slowly toward the stall and as soon as she turned the corner the sight before her had her wishing it was someone getting attacked. There was a puddle of vomit on the floor that was being slowly washed away and Shawn was sprawled out on the concrete floor sputtering and red faced as the water pelted his body.

"Shawn!" Deftly avoiding the puddle she turned off the shower and knelt next to the prone man.

"_Jules._" Shawn opened his eyes and relief flooded his system as he looked into the concerned eyes of the blonde detective. He slowly began to sit up and once he was in a sitting position he felt her slender hands on his face. He smiled broadly at the touch and leaned into her touch and before he could help himself kissed her fingers.

She quickly withdrew her hand. "What the hell Shawn!" He jumped at her yell. "You get skunk drunk and then come in here to make a mess. I can't believe I was actually worried about you." She stood up and looked like she was about to smack him.

"Jules...no...this isn't..."

"Just. Shut. Up! You are clearly drunk. Calling for _help_? Come on Shawn! This is total crap especially after all we've just been through with Yin!" She turned and stomped toward the door. "I'm going to leave you here to yourself."

"_Jules...please_." The plea was so quiet that the blonde detective truly didn't hear it or the amount of pain he was in. The only sound that he heard the detective make was the slamming of the door as she left.

"_Please...someone...help me_."

Gus was talking to Trixie when the sight of Juliet leaving the outhouse caught his eye. She was clearly upset as she slammed the door and only walked a few feet before she started to cry.

"Sorry Trixie but.." He pointed at Juliet. "She has been having a rough time and..."

Trixie put a hand on his arm and smiled. "Go." Before he could jog off she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "You're a really good friend."

Gus couldn't stop the wide grin that crossed his face as he began his slow jog toward Juliet. Once he reached her thought the smile quickly disappeared, Juliet's eyes were red and tears were coming down freely. She was shaking slightly but there was an air of anger she was giving off.

"Juliet." She looked up at him and an indiscernible look crossed her face. "You ok."

"Me? I'm fine but you need to go pick up your drunk friend before he vomits all over the place again."

Gus was thoroughly confused and the anger behind her words wasn't helping his confusion. "Juliet. What are you talking about?"

Juliet swiped at her eyes and pointed at the door she just walked through. "Your friend is in there throwing up all over the place. He had the _**audacity**_ to call for help and when I went in there he tried to make a move on me." She was breathing heavily when she finished but Gus' mind was running a mile a minute.

"Wait Shawn's sick?"

She shook her head violently. "No he's drunk." She crossed her arms effectively shutting herself off from the world. "Why would he do something so stupid especially since Yin?"

Gus was still running what Juliet had said earlier through his head. _Shawn doesn't get drunk. Hasn't in a long time. What?_ Juliet was still talking and getting angrier as she continued. Gus gripped her shoulder effectively getting her to quiet. "Juliet." She looked directly in his eyes. "Shawn doesn't really drink he says it dull his abilities. And if he does drink he stops at two. Always."

Shock, realization, and guilt crossed the blonde face as he said those words. "But..." She covered her mouth with her hand and gasped. "Oh god Shawn!" She spun and ran back into the building with Gus hot on her trail as they entered the little stall the sight before them almost made Juliet scream.

Shawn slumped against the wall and for an instant he wished the water was on again soaking him in its coldness that burned to his core. It hurt to swallow, breathe too deeply, blink. The pain was coming in waves now it would start at about a five and slowly and steadily climb to about thirty and then start all over again. His head felt like someone had put a railroad spike through it_. Actually that might make it feel better._ His stomach was constantly rolling and the sweat was pouring off him almost as fast as the water did from the shower. _God it hurts._

He fell to the side which elicited a moan. _Why did she leave?_ Uncontrolled tears began to fall as the pain increased even more. His heart felt like it was going to beat out of his chest and his head started to pound in tandem with it_. What did I do wrong? _

He was unable to roll his head away as he got sick again, vomit splashed on the floor and the puddle grew till his head was lying in it. _How can this get any worse?_

His breathing started to hitch as the pain increased and he curled up into a small ball as possible_. Just let it stop. Please just let it stop!_

Shawn felt his heart starting to skip beats and he knew he was in danger but the pain was too great he was too exhausted to do anything, even call for help. When his world began to gray around the edges he welcomed the dullness of pain it brought with it. As he gave in to unconsciousness he thanked god for the reprieve unknowing that his heart's erratic beat was getting worse that it couldn't take anymore abuse, that it wasn't pumping blood like it should, that in a matter of minutes it was going to stop.

**A/N: Before I get reviews about Juliet being OOC she has just been in a trauma and when someone is in that type of trauma they act out against even your closest friends. Also innocent things (ie Shawn kissing her fingers in relief) will be seen as anything but and therefore make the person angrier.**


	4. What Is Going On Here

As Gus and Juliet burst into the little stall Juliet almost screamed at the sight, Shawn was curled into a little ball, a puddle of vomit all around his head, any exposed skin was beet red, and he was shivering violently.

"Gus! Go get help. _**NOW!"**_ Gus just nodded and ran the door slamming loudly as he ran toward the picnic.

Juliet quickly make her way to Shawn's prone form and tried to rouse him. "Come on Shawn. Wake up." She gently shook at his shoulder and all Shawn did was continue to shiver. Juliet closed her eyes regretting what she was going to do next. "I'm so sorry Shawn." She slapped the shower head on and ice cold water poured over the both of them. Shawn started to gasp and shiver even more violently as he was pelted with it.

Juliet tried to get him to uncurl but was failing miserably. "Come on Shawn. Please wake up." When Shawn's gasping became frantic she felt around his neck to find a pulse. The thumping under her fingers was too fast and she could feel beats being skipped_. No no no no no NO!_ "Shawn don't do this wake up." She slapped at his face to try and get some sort of reaction out of him. Shawn's gasping abruptly stopped and his body went limp. Juliet quickly unfurled his body and felt for a pulse again, this time there was no thumping.

Gus tore out of that little room the image of Shawn gasping for air seared on his mind. He bypassed Trixie who look thoroughly confused by his panic and ran into Henry and Carlton.

"What the _hell_, Guster." Carlton was covered in beer and Henry was wearing bar-b-que sauce that he was about to paint onto the chicken.

While the detective sputtered and tried to wipe the foamy drink off of him Henry took one look at Gus and knew something was wrong. Gus was panting and had a wild look in his eyes as if he was trying to figure out what to say.

"_Gus_. What's wrong?" Carlton heard the seriousness in the older Spencer's voice so he stopped his ranting and turned his attention to the panting man.

"Shawn...sick...help!" That was all he could manage before he turned tail and ran toward the building. Without another thought both men followed him both asking what was going on but receiving no answer. As they slammed open the door to the little room they heard a choked sob.

"HELP! HE'S NOT BREATHING!"

The three men exploded into the stall and the sight that was before them would haunt them for years to come. Shawn was sprawled out on the concrete floor, red as a beet, and Juliet was performing CPR on his still form. Henry was the first to jump into action. He huddled next to his son and as soon as Juliet was done giving the rescue breath he took over the compressions. "Come on kid. Don't do this."

"O'Hara what is going on?"

She shook her head. "I don't know he wasn't this bad when I was in here earlier." She turned the shower head off. "I tried to wake him but...but."

Carlton wasn't really listening as he whipped out his cell phone and was calling for an ambulance.

The sight of relief from Henry had them all looking in his direction again. "He's breathing. His heart's beating,a little fast, but it's beating." Henry looked almost as red faced as Shawn but the relief was evident.

Shawn's shivering began again and he tried to curl back into a ball again but Henry wasn't allowing it as he pulled him into his lap. "What the_ hell_ is wrong with him?"

"I-I don't know. He was okay a little bit ago."

"No he wasn't." All eyes landed on the lanky detective who looked like he was shrinking under their stares. "He was sweating pretty badly when I directed him toward here ."

Any response that they had toward the man was cutoff by the sound of sirens that were approaching. "I'll go direct them." And with that Carlton left the little room.

Henry looked back down at his son who was still gasping for air. Sweat was pouring off his body and he could feel the heat rising off of him. "What the hell did you get into kid?" The only response he received was the continued gasping.


	5. Help Is Here, Now What?

The all too small room was quickly filled to capacity as Carlton returned and the paramedics came swarming in.

"Sir can you tell us what happened?"

Henry looked up at them and shook his head. "He was fine about an hour ago and then we found him in here like this." He motioned with his eyes toward the gasping man. "Actually he wasn't looking this good. His wasn't breathing and we had to perform CPR."

The paramedics gently pulled Shawn out of Henry's lap and started to take vitals. "How long was he down?"

Henry's eyes flicked over to Juliet who shrugged. "About a minute if I had to guess."

The older of the paramedics just nodded, cut open Shawn's shirt and started putting heart monitor pads on him. Juliet gasped when she saw what the shirt was covering. Shawn's skin was red and mottled and the silver white scar that was in the center of his chest was such a stark contrast she couldn't keep her eyes off of it.

"Anyone know what this is from?"

Henry spoke up first. "When he was in his twenties he had a valve repair and hasn't had any problems since."

"Is he on any meds for it?"

"He is supposed to be taking a low dose of Coumadin. Would that do this?"

The paramedic shook his head. "No but it is something we need to know for when we treat him." He turned back to the monitor and whispered something to his partner who in turn left the little room.

"What were his symptoms before he went down?"

"Um he was sweating badly and had thrown up a couple of times." The paramedic starting writing on his notepad everything he was being told.

"Is he allergic to anything?"

"No."

The door open again and the paramedics partner came back in with a back board and an oxygen tank. He placed the mask on Shawn and turn the nozzle on.

"Has he had any recent injuries?"

"No...wait! He um was surfing earlier and wiped out he told me he was ok but..." The paramedic nodded at Juliet and started to check for any obvious signs of injuries. He started talking with the hospital as he was checking.

"Cottage this is bus 41 we have a male patient presenting with SOB, tachycardia, elevated temp, overall skin redness and profuse sweating. His vitals are the following; pulse 150, resps. 32- shallow BP 180 over 100, temp. 103, and pulse ox 99. We have patient on two liters of O2. Before we arrived on scene patient was down for about minute but after CPR pulse and respirations returned." The paramedic froze when he found the welt on Shawn's leg.

"Do you know what this might be from?" Everyone shook their heads and the paramedic just nodded his. "Ok." He got back on the radio. "Patient has a welt that is approximately one inch in length and half an inch in width. Patient was surfing earlier and wiped out but no other injuries are apparent at this time."

The radio crackled. "Ok bus 41 bring him into cottage we'll have trauma one open for him." The paramedics quickly started strapping Shawn onto the back board and lifted him. Henry helped the paramedic carry their gear.

"I'm his father I'm going with."

The older paramedic just nodded as the trekked outside. They walked through a crowd of police officers and their families all of them looking shocked at the condition of the man on the board. They strapped the board onto the gurney and loading it all into the ambulance Henry jumping in with one of the paramedics as the other ran around the vehicle and quickly pulled away.

"Detective can you tell me what happened?"

Carlton didn't realize it but he was following the route of the ambulance with his eyes until Karen snapped him out of his stupor. "I-I don't know really. I just thought he had too much to drink. If O'Hara hadn't found him. He wasn't breathing when we got in there." Karen gasped at what he said.

"_What?"_ Shocked crossed her face and she had to take a few deep breaths to calm herself. "Where are they taking him?"

"Cottage."

Several people upon hearing where Shawn was going started to grab the stuff they had brought to the picnic and loading into their cars. Others just left their items and hopped into their cars as to get to the hospital faster. Carlton, Gus and Juliet were the only ones left standing outside the building their friend was fighting for his life in. Gus was shaking uncontrollably and tried to fish his keys out of his shorts pocket but was failing miserably. Carlton pulled him toward the direction of his car with Juliet on their trail. Once in the car the shell shock wore off; Juliet started to cry quietly and Gus started to pick out imaginary lint on his clothes to keep his mind occupied. Carlton got into his quiet vehicle and pulled away the days events, specifically the last half an hour playing in his mind over and over again.

"**DAMMIT**" He slammed the palm of his hand into the steering wheel as hard as he could definitely causing a bruise. Both Gus and Juliet jumped at his outburst and looked at him. "What kind of detective am I? I should've seen it. I just thought he had too much to drink." Juliet reached over and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Carlton I left him in there. If Gus hadn't talked to me..." She started crying again at the thought of the look in his eyes as he was pleading with her. She withdrew her hand and used it to wipe her eyes. Carlton spared her a glance before he looked back at the road.

"O'Hara this is not your fault." Juliet just nodded at his words and sighed deeply.

"I just want him to be ok." Carlton just grunted his agreement and kept his eyes on the road. "I need him to be ok." Juliet started crying again.

"He'll be ok. Shawn is the only person I know who can get shot, jump on the hood of a car, and still worry about his hair." Gus laughed a bit at the thought. "He got three phone numbers before they even took him to surgery." The chuckle this time turned to a quiet sob as he thought of Shawn gasping for air on the floor of that shower stall.

Dr. Mike Morris was enjoying his day as he left the on-call room after enjoying a much needed nap. When her entered the nurses station he could feel the air crackle with excitement. "What's going on Beth."

The blonde headed nurse was grabbing some bags of saline and putting them in the freezer as she removed some already frozen bags. "Unknown trauma coming in. Patient is in bad shape and has already had one arrest." She handed him the notes she took from the paramedics. He raised his eyebrows at them.

"This can't be caused by trauma unless he has severe head involvement and then everyone would be able to see that."

"Well Mike you will be able to take a look here in about thirty seconds. The ambulance is arriving."

He jogged over to the ambulance bay door and waited as the paramedics unloaded the gurney followed by an older man who was grasping the patients hand in a death grip. "Sir you'll have to wait out here while we look at him."

"Like _hell I will_." One of the paramedics stepped in front of him while the nurses and Mike continued moving the gurney effectively causing the hold to break.

"Sir they need the room to check him over."

Henry just wiped his hand over him face. "I know, I know." With that the paramedic left him in the hall and went into the room that Shawn had disappeared into seconds ago.

Mike was thoroughly confused by the symptoms that the man was presenting. "What was it he was doing again before he got sick."

"The paramedic notes say he was surfing and wiped out." The doctor was checking his skin.

"Well that explains this bruise on his back but not the welt on his leg. Has he been conscious at all?" The paramedic just shook his head in the negative. "Ok. I need some ammonia over here. Let's see if we can wake him."

He was quickly handed the vial and some cotton balls to catch the liquid in. He snapped the glass, removed the oxygen mask, and placed the soaked cotton under his nose. Shawn's eyes fluttered open and finally opened fully.

"Wha..?"

"Mr. Spencer you are in the hospital. Can you tell me what happened today?"

Shawn beckoned the doctor over who just leaned in to hear the man. "Pl-please just stop the pain." Tears started to leak from his eyes. "Hurts too much...ju-just kill me, _please_." The begging in his voice caused the doctors eyes to widen but before the doctor could ask what hurt Shawn had passed out again.

"Mike_ what_ did he say?"

He shook his head clear. "He begged me to kill him. Said it hurt too much."


	6. Friends, Tears, and Bikinis

Dr. Morris stepped out of the ICU and went directly to the group of people who were waiting for the poor man's update. When he walked into the little room he was met with several people in beach gear standing up and looking apprehensive.

"Shawn Spencer?" The man from that had come in with him stood up first.

"I'm Henry his father." Mike nodded. "But everyone here is welcome to hear the update."

Mike sighed as he was preparing how to say this. "Well we have no idea what has caused his symptoms. We can't give him anything because of that also. Right now he is experiencing tachycardia, high fever, and extreme pain. We are attempting to bring his fever down with frozen bags of saline and cooling blankets but it is only making a dent into the fever. As for the pain and tachycardia there isn't much we can do because if we give him the wrong med he may have an extreme reaction and die." He placed a hand on the older man's shoulder. "We're doing all we can and I have called in some friends to help with a diagnosis." Henry just nodded.

"Thank you doctor." Mike nodded and then headed back to Shawn's room. Henry just stood motionless until he felt a hand on his shoulder. He spun and saw the scared looking face of Gus.

"He's going to be OK Mr. Spencer. I just know it." Gus didn't know if he was saying to convince him or more himself. Henry just nodded again and then faced the group of officers.

"I know you all came to support Shawn but right now there is nothing that we can do. I'm not kicking you all out but I think everyone should go home and get showers, food and what not. I will call if anything changes and you are more than welcome to come back." Everyone knew they were looking at a man defeated and slowly some of the officer that weren't as close as the others got up and left leaving words of condolences. Soon the only ones left were Juliet, Gus, Buzz, Henry, Karen, and Carlton.

"You know you guys can go get cleaned up _too._" Henry said as he sat down in the middle of the group with another cup of coffee. He was met with shakes of five heads.

"Frannie is bringing me a change and knowing her she is going to bring us enough food to last a week."

"I just hope we're not here that long." At Henry's words Juliet got up and left quickly tears streaming down her cheeks. Gus knew exactly what was wrong so he quickly followed the blonde detective. He found her next to a vending machine trying her damdest to dry her tears.

_"Juliet_." She looked up and on seeing Gus her tears came back in full force.

"Gus I just _left _ him in there. He was in so much pain. How could I not see that? All I could focus on was him kissing my fingers. What the hell is wrong with _me?"_

"PTSD"

"_What?"_

"Juliet after what you've been through I would be more surprised if you were ok" She looked directly in his eyes tears rolling out of them.

"_But it's Shawn_." Her tears turned to full on sobs and Gus pulled her into a tight hug. Slowly her tears subsided and when she broke the hug she saw Gus blushing.

"Sorry it's just you're wearing a bikini and um well it's small." Juliet couldn't help it she started to laugh so hard she was gasping for air. More than one person that passed looked at her as if she was crazy. It didn't take long for Gus to join in too. The duo continued their laughing until several rushed footsteps got their attention.

"Seizure..."

"Pretty bad..."

"Heart rate sky rocketing..."

They only caught snippets of what the nurses were talking about but it was enough to know that it was Shawn that they were talking about. As the nurses ran past the waiting room they saw the rest of the group standing at the entrance of the waiting room. Henry looked so un-Henry like he looked actually scared and the rest wore their own mask of worry. Juliet and Gus quickly made their way to the room and the earlier mood was forgotten as they waited for some news on their fallen friend.

Dr. Morris and Nurse Beth had stayed with these patient since he arrived continuously monitoring his status. Every fifteen minutes she would swap out the frozen saline bags and cooling blankets but his temperature was staying steady at 105. _At least it quit climbing_.

Mike watched as Beth ran yet another EKG to make sure the man's heart valve wasn't failing with all the pressure being put on it.

"Mike. Here you go." He looked at the EKG and sighed with relief_. At least that's the one thing that we don't have to worry. Yet._

"How did the family take it?"

"Well not too good and it looks like he's a cop."

"What make you say that? Everyone in that room was wearing swimsuits."

"I recognized the Chief of Police."

Beth gave a reassuring squeeze on his shoulder. "You'll figure this out. I'm sure of it."

"But what if it's too late?" He motioned at the man in the bed. Shawn was writhing in pain even in his semi-conscious state, sweat was pouring off him in torrents, and he gasping for breath. Mike went into the room and began looking at the monitors.

"Heart rate 160 that valve can't take much of this for very long." Beth just nodded at his words as she scribbled in Shawn's chart she had worked with the man for the past fiveyears and she knew the wheels were turning in his head.

"_h-hot...so hot_." They looked down at the man as he tried to throw the blankets off. Both Beth and Mike went to the man and started to try and calm him.

"Mr. Spencer you are in a hospital these blankets are here to cool you. " Mike looked up at Beth. "Go get more frozen saline for compresses and chilled saline for his IV. If his temperature doesn't go down soon we'll have to start cold water bladder irrigations." Beth nodded and went to leave when the monitors started a crescendo. Quickly she helped Mike as they tried to figure out what was going on and soon they were answered as the man began convulsing on the bed and his heart rate went to 220. Beth grabbed a phone and quickly dialed for help. Mike made a decision and ordered some IV valium to end the seizure after it was administered thankfully the man relaxed.

"He won't survive another one of those. I want two nurses on him at all times. I need to go and talk to his family." He left the group of nurses who had started changing the frozen saline and cooling blankets. One was getting a catheter kit ready so they could starts the bladder irrigations and Beth was trying to give the man some comfort by talking in a hushed whisper to him. Mike smiled at her as he left. _Be a man Mike!_ They had skirted around a relationship but for some reason had never been on the same page. He pushed those thoughts to the back of his head as he yet, again, was going to tell Shawn's family that they didn't know what was happening.


	7. Spencer's Don't Get Sick

_It was HOT! Like sleeping on the sun HOT!_ Shawn was going to yell at Gus for putting the heat on in the office again but was halted when his head exploded in pain. Squeezing his eyes shut other aches and pains were making themselves known; his back felt like he'd been stabbed, he wanted to curl into a ball to stop his stomach from hurting, he was slick with sweat and he could feel his breath rattling as he exhaled. He opened his eyes slowly. "_mmmmmmph! Wha?"_ Blonde hair and blue eyes floated into his vision. "_Jules?"_

"No sweetie I'm Beth, your nurse, and you are at Cottage. Can you stay awake for us?" He gave a small nod and soon a young doctor was in his room.

"Mr. Spencer. I'm Dr. Morris and I have been trying to figure out what is going on can you tell me what happened before you got ill?" Shawn swallowed and concentrated on the words intensely.

_"Surfing, wiped out, leg hurt."_ He screwed his eyes shut as the pain ramped up another notch. "_Blur from there."_ Mike nodded and started to examine the welt on his leg more closely. He was still confused the welt wasn't very large by any means and it was no redder than the rest of his skin putting on a glove he touched it and didn't note anything out of the ordinary. _What am I missing?_ He went back to the head of the bed.

"Mr. Spencer try to get some rest I'm going to talk with some of my colleagues about this. OK?"

"_Shawn. Mr. Spencer is my da- ACK!"_ Shawn's lungs rebelled against him as he coughed till his felt them devoid of air. With a loud '_whoop'_ he managed to take a breath. Beth rubbed his back and looked up at Mike who grabbed his stethoscope and listened to the man's lungs.

"Add severe pulmonary edema to his symptoms and call respiratory he is going to need a vent." Beth nodded grimly and helped the young man settle into bed. Checking all his vitals again she stroked his hair until he fell into a fitful sleep. "I'll be right back. Need to get consent from the family."

########################

The waiting room seemed like a prison to the occupants; Henry kept alternating between pacing and bouncing his legs as he sat, Gus was flipping through the same magazine for perhaps the hundredth time, Carlton tried to look like he wasn't worried but he fooled no one, Karen was making phone calls and Buzz was trying to comfort a silently crying Juliet. They all looked up when they heard someone enter the room, a petite woman with long brown hair and big brown eyes stood there hold two very full bags.

"Frannie!" Buzz got up and took the bags from her.

"I brought you a change of clothes but I also brought some for Detective O'Hara and Chief Vick. We seem to be about the same size and I know you must be chilled to the bone in your swimsuits." The two women looked up in utter shock at the woman they barely knew who just shrugged her shoulders. "I also threw in some in for Detective Lassiter. I know my Buzzy is taller than you but hopefully that won't be a problem." She stared down at her feet as Carlton gave her a strange look, he in a million years never had seen anyone be so kind just to be kind.

"Thank you _Frannie_." Buzz beamed at his wife and began going through the bags grabbing his own change and handing the bag to a still shocked Carlton. Juliet and Karen took the other bag and were surprised to find several items of nice clothing instead of the expected sweat pants and old t-shirts.

"_Francine_. These are lovely." Karen smiled at her junior officer's wife as her and Juliet grabbed a pair of clothes. Francine blushed under the praise and just nodded non-committedly.

"Sorry I didn't have anything in your sizes Mr. Guster and Mr. Spencer but I can go buy you guys some if you give me a size." Both men looked up and smiled at the kind offer.

"Thank you Francine but we'll be fine. When we find out what is going on with Shawn Gus will drive me home for a change." Francine nodded and sat down in an open chair and joined the vigil in the room. When the door swung open again to the waiting room they expected to see the returning detectives but instead saw the doctor from earlier come in looking worried. Henry made a move to stand but was stopped by the man who placed a hand on his shoulder and sat down next to him.

"Mr. Spencer I need your consent to put in a ventilator. Shawn's lungs are starting fill with fluid and I am worried about collapse." He handed Henry a clipboard so that he could read it over. "He was awake for a few minutes and was only able to tell us what we already knew about the surfing and the small injury to his leg. I have talked with some colleagues of mine and they are pondering over his symptoms." He took the clipboard that Henry had signed and sighed. "I wish there was more I could tell you Mr. Spencer but I can't. Would you like to see him before he placed the vent?" Henry nodded.

"_Can everyone come_?"

"In this situation, yes." Henry and Gus looked up realizing that this simple permission was the doctor's way of admitting he didn't think Shawn was going to make it. "When the others join you just tell the nurse who you're going to see and she will lead you to his room." Mike stood and gave a reassuring squeeze to Henry's shoulder before he left. Henry stood and starting his pacing again. Soon Juliet, Karen, Buzz, and Carlton entered in new clothing.

"Frannie you were right the clothes fit them perfectly." Buzz looked up and froze at his wife's face. "_Frannie?"_ She swiped the tears from her face and shook her head. Buzz thought the worse and felt his heart drop to his feet.

"Doctor still doesn't know what's wrong. They're going to put a vent in." Buzz felt marginally better at Henry's words but knowing that Shawn was still in danger didn't help his mood. "Doc said that we all can visit him before they put it in though." Carlton and Karen knew exactly why they would allow so many visitors in the little ICU room, every time they had been a part of a large group in one of those rooms the occupant never made it. Silently the group of six went to the nurse's station and were directed to Shawn's room.

The group stood in front of the door no one wanting to enter afraid of what lay beyond. Henry sighed heavily and pushed on the door while the group followed. "_God kid!_" Henry didn't think it possible but his son was redder than before, an oxygen mask obscured his face, he had two IV's going with chilled saline, he was covered in a cooling blanket, a nurse was changing frozen saline bags, and EKG wires poked out from the bed. Henry all but collapsed in the seat next to the bed and tried to control his breathing, which was hard when his son was fighting for his own breath. The blonde headed nurse addressed the group.

"I'm Beth I've been with Shawn since he came in." Everyone nodded numbly. "Is there a Jules here?" Juliet looked up shocked.

"Th-that's me." The nurse smiled sweetly at her.

"He asked for you earlier when he woke up. He must really care for you." Beth gave a comforting squeeze to Juliet's arm as she left. "Just give us a call if you need anything. I hate to do this but in ten minutes respiratory will be in to place the vent." After the nurse left the room was silent except for the sound of the oxygen hissing and Shawn's watery breaths.

Henry watched as Juliet took station on the opposite side the bed and brushed Shawn's sweaty hair back and murmured into his ear. _ She clearly loves him why can't she see that?_ The group stayed silent until a loud gasp filled the room. Henry stood up and leaned over the head of the bed as Shawn's eyes fluttered slowly and then opened to a squint.

"_D-dad?"_

"I'm here kid." Shawn continued to gasp loudly and looked confused.

"_Am I going to die dad?"_ That question stunned the occupants. "_Dad?"_ Henry's shaky hand found Shawn's all too hot one and he gripped it.

"No." His other hand ghosted to beet red forehead. "Spencer men don't get sick and die you _hear_ me? Spencer's get shot, blown up, poisoned, or stabbed we don't get sick. We don't die from a simple cold." Henry could feel a sting behind his eyes but he pushed it back.

"_Sorry dad."_ Shawn's eyes started to droop but not before he gave Henry's hand a squeeze. "_And Gus._" The man in question was by Shawn's side in an instant.

"Yeah buddy."

"_Thumbs up on Trixie."_ A small smile curled his lips and he fell back to the world of unconsciousness. Buzz, Francine, and Juliet excused themselves from the room feeling they were watching something too private for them. Juliet lingered at the door waiting for Carlton to join them but he never looked up from Shawn's still form. She watched him confused as his eyes studied Shawn and then she saw them light up like they had every time he solved a case.

"_Carlton?"_ Henry and Gus looked up at the detectives confused.

"I've seen this before. I think-I think I know what's wrong." He all but ran out the door looking for the young doctor from earlier.


	8. Everything Is not Ok

Henry was torn between following the retreating detective or staying with his very sick son. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Gus looking at him and he what to do.

"Lassiter!" He jogged to catch up with the man who was searching for something. When the nurse from earlier walked by he stopped her. "I need to talk to the doctor from earlier,_now."_ Carlton knew he had his 'I'm going kill something soon' look which is why the nurse's eyes widened and she almost ran into the little room she knew Mike was in.

"_Mike!"_He was on the phone trying to listen to person on the other end so he held up a finger to Beth. In turn she cocked her head to the side, put her hand on her hips, and knitted her brows together. "_Really!" _Mike looked up and cringed he didn't know who had walked in and now he was regretting his action. He mouthed 'sorry' to her and almost sighed in relief when her stance changed to more relaxed.

"Ok thank you George. If you can think of anything else please feel free to call me back." Hanging up he scribbled on a note pad. "That was George Foreby he said it sounds like some kind of new toxin or poison. I need the lab to take more blood and run the full gambit of test." He went to hand her the doctor order sheet and when she didn't take it he looked up and saw her eyes bore holes in to his skull.

"_I'm sorry Beth I can see you need to tell me something important. So pray tell what is going on?"_ Mike snickered.

"I would never say pray tell, Beth, and yes I'm sorry I didn't ask before. What is going on nurse?" He waggled his eyebrows at her.

"That tall detective is wanting to talk to you and he looks really pissed so I suggest you go out there." She grabbed him by the elbow and began to ushered him out. Before they exited he leaned over and whispered to her.

"_If he shoots me you are so going to buy me dinner._"

"And if he doesn't you are going to buy me some." They froze both realizing that they had just opened a door that has been locked for five years.

"I'll hold you up to that Nurse Beth." He smiled and braced himself for a verbal assault as he exited the room. As soon as he left he spotted the detective pacing in front of the nursing station. "Detective I was told you needed to talk with me."

"Yes, I think I know what is wrong with Spencer." Mike had heard this a thousand times before it always seemed when someone got terribly ill someone else in the family knew exactly what it was and how to cure it.

"Detective I can assure you we are doing everything we can to figure out what is wrong with your friend. In fact I just got off the phone with a toxicologist he recommend some test to run. Now if you don't mind I am going to go place these orders." He went to walk around Carlton but was halted by his patient's father.

"Listen doctor this man right here." He pointed at Carlton. "Is no idiot and since you are taking advice from others why not him." Mike looked around and saw several eyes studying him. He looked over to the room that held his patient and watched as respiratory was inserting a vent tube.

"I'm sorry it's just that I need to figure out what's wrong before it's too late." Mike sighed and looked at the tall man who still looked shocked at the other man's words. "_Detective?"_ Carlton shook his head clear.

"Well you see my sister films documentaries and she works for the Discovery channel. Well last year she went with them to Australia and two of the people got stung by this little jellyfish and were very sick for like two weeks." He chewed on his lip a bit. "I think it was called ir-u-kan-ji." Mike tried to hold his eyeroll. "I know it seems crazy but I've seen it before. She sent me the tape and it seems to fit."

"Detective. You are trying to tell me that a jelly fish _native_ to _Australia _has stung your friend." He sighed and walked around the man to place his order.

Henry and Juliet were staring at Carlton as if he just grew a second head. "Jellyfish Carlton, _really?" _Carlton spun and gave his partner a look that made her soul jump.

"Hurricane Xena." Carlton's attention changed to the older man.

"_What."_

"Hurricane Xena. She blew this was from Australia didn't she?" Juliet nodded and looked again at her partner apologetically. "Well why don't we inform the doctor of such."

They found the doctor in Shawn's room having the nurse taking blood. Shawn now had a vent tube in place and his face was taken up by most of it Gus was still by his side and when the group entered he shot them hopeful looks. "Is it what Lassiter thinks it is?" The doctor looked up and this time he didn't suppress his sigh.

"Detective Lassiter thinks its a jellyfish sting. I know a sting when I see them they are large. Besides it's not even the season for them here." Gus looked from his friend, to the doctor, to the group and then back to Shawn who was still sweating profusely.

The nurse had finished taking the blood and started to run an EKG while she was changing the cooling blankets and frozen saline bags. She gave Mike a meaningful look which didn't get missed by Henry.

"Doctor Morris would you just hear us out." He watched as Mike looked at Beth again and she gave him a nod.

"Ok. Tell me why exactly you think this is the most probable answer." He crossed his arms in front of his chest and looked at the trio.

"Hurricane Xena. She blew in from Australia. Isn't is possible she blew some of the creatures this way?" Mike paused seriously considering what he was told.

"Ok. Beth start some mag and morphine. That can help with both the venom and the tachycardia along with the pain." She nodded and walked out the door handing Mike the most recent EKG and the blood samples. "I am still going to run this blood for toxins." He studied the report and sighed. "I hope that you are right because his valve is starting to give out." He walked out the door leaving behind four very shocked people. Henry sat next to Gus, Juliet took her position on the other side of the bed and began whispering in Shawn's ear again. Carlton left the little room to go inform the others in the waiting area. He passed Beth in the door and she gave him a small smile. Beth started hooking up the mag and the morphine.

"You know Dr. Morris means well he's just worried." Henry looked up and saw in her eyes more than her words. "He's never lost a patient in five years because of misdiagnosis." She put a comforting hand on Juliet's shoulder. "He just wants to make sure you boyfriend is getting the best route of care." Juliet looked up.

"Umm...he's-he's not my boyfriend. I just work with him." Beth gave Juliet a knowing smile.

"Ok. Well he ordered the Magnesium because it may help with the syndrome. The morphine will help with the pain, we hope, and in turn it lowers the heart rate. If Shawn's heart rate doesn't lower enough he will probably add a nitro drip to do such." Beth took Shawn's vitals again and left.

Henry snaked his hand under the cooling blanket and grasped his son's. "You better be alright kid. You don't have a choice in the matter. I haven't gotten to turn you down enough for cases. Until then...well you don't have a choice in the matter."


	9. All We Can Do Is Wait

Top of Form

Bottom of Form

Carlton had intended to leave when Karen, Buzz and his wife did but for some reason he stayed in the waiting room looking each time the door opened to the ICU. He wasn't sure why he was staying but he felt like he owed Spencer something when in fact he didn't owe him for a damn thing. _Except he figured out where Yin had O'Hara and you just overlooked how sick he was._ Carlton hated how condescending his inner voice was so he picked up the nearest magazine and read.

OOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOO

Henry was keeping vigil over his son's sweating, shaking form as Gus and Juliet slept in their chairs. A couple of times the nurse, Beth he thought was her name, came in and did vitals when she did the last set she mumbled something to herself and quickly left the room. Henry looked at his watch again and saw that it was almost midnight; the doctor had said that there were no notable toxins in Shawn's blood and that they were going to go with the tentative diagnosis of Irukandji Syndrome. Unfortunately with this diagnosis there wasn't much they could do but provide comfort measures and pray that Shawn's body could hold out against the assault. Henry sighed and rubbed his hand over his face.

"Jeez kid you can't do anything halfway can you?" In his other hand he felt a twitch and when he looked up he felt a definite squeeze. "_Shawn!"_ Henry watched as the sunken hazel eyes opened and searched around. "I'm here Shawn, _I'm here."_ Finally Shawn's eyes landed on him and Henry could see the pain, fear, and confusion. Shawn tried to jerk his hand away from his father's grasp but he was as strong as a sick kitten so it didn't take much for Henry to keep his hand in place. "You're in the hospital kid they're not quite sure what happened to you but they think you got stung by a jelly fish that caused all of this." Henry thought he saw realization flash across Shawn's eyes but almost as quickly the pain and fear returned. "All they can do is try to help with the pain."

"_Hey buddy_." Henry hadn't noticed it before but both Gus and Juliet had woken up and were watching Shawn expectantly. Shawn tried to smile at Gus' words but because of the endotracheal tube it came out more as a grimace. "You always have to milk it when you're sick, don't you?" Gus smiled but there were tears that threatened in his eyes.

"I'll go get the doctor." Gus and Henry watched Juliet retreat and then turned their attention back to the men in the bed. They were silent as they watched Shawn, who was staring back at them. Soon the door to the room opened and they were joined by two nurses, the doctor, and Juliet.

"Looks like someone decided to join us. How you doing Mr. Spencer?" Henry chuckled as Shawn rolled his eyes.

"He's trying to say Mr. Spencer is that old man over there with no hair and a permanent scowl on his face. I'm Shawn." Beth laughed as she set about pulling off the cooling blankets and setting up a machine in the room.

"Ok. Shawn I'm Dr. Morris I've been taking care of you since you arrived. Do you remember me from the emergency room? Blink once for yes and twice for no." Shawn blinked once. "That's good. Now I am going to get an ultrasound of your heart so I can get a good look at your valve. Have you ever had one of these?" Shawn blinked once again. "Ok. I'm about to start." Henry, Juliet, and Gus reluctantly watched from the corner of the room as the doctor and nurses performed the scan. After about fifteen minutes the doctor was done and the nurses were cleaning Shawn up and replacing the cooling blanket. "Mr. Spencer can I talk to you in private?"

Henry followed the man outside the room and prepared for the worse. "_How bad?"_

Mike just sighed and met the man's eyes. "The valve is failing and rapidly too. We can't replace it till his is better and that could take up to two weeks."

Henry closed his eyes and breathed deeply. "Can his heart hold out that long?"

When he looked at the doctor he knew the answer, Mike shook his head in the negative. "_But_ his fever is slowly getting better and the tachycardia is slowing. I am hopeful he will be one of the lucky ones and the symptoms will have all but disappeared about thirty hours since onset." Mike checked his watch. "It's been about twelve since he got stung so it's actually starting to look good." Henry turned to go back into the room but he was stopped by Mike. "I really hate to do this but we need the room empty of visitors till about seven so that we can keep a close eye on him. If you like we can set you up in one of our family rooms." Henry nodded and waited till he was joined by Gus and Juliet, he led them to the waiting room and was surprised when they spotted Carlton in one of the chairs.

"_Carlton?"_ The tall man looked up from his magazine and looked almost apprehensive as he waited.

"O'Hara. How's Spencer?" Juliet sat next to her partner and filled him in on everything. Henry sat next to Gus and watched as Juliet told Carlton of Shawn's condition; the unshed tears and the shaky hands didn't go unnoticed.

"When do you think she's going to figure out how much she loves him?" Henry looked up at Gus and smiled.

"Don't know Gus but I hope she figures it out pretty soon." As soon as Juliet was done telling Carlton the news Henry butted in. "I want all three of you to go home and get some rest, you're no goo to Shawn if you're exhausted."

He was met with three very surprised and stubborn faces. "What about _you_ Mr. Spencer?"

"They are going to put me up in waiting room for families of patients in the ICU and I will try and get some rest there. Besides we have been kicked out to at least seven tomorrow morning." Henry watched as all three left reluctantly, Gus telling him that he was going to bring some clothes for him in the morning when he got here. Henry smiled and knew that the man was not going to be a minute late in the morning. "Thank you Gus." He clamped a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it gently. "Shawn's got a good friend in you." Guilt flashed across Gus' face for an instant but it was quickly replaced with a forced smile.

"_Anything_ for my brother."

Henry sat down heavily and waited to be shown to that room. He thumbed through some magazines, paced, and drank yet another cup of coffee before he got antsy. Walking up to the door that led into the ICU he buzzed for help. When the door opened he was expecting the nurse from earlier to come out and show him where he was staying instead two nurses were pulling a gurney and one was pushing. Henry watched as they ran with the gurney toward the catacombs of the inner hospital. A second later the doctor from earlier came out running, he shot Henry an apologetic glance and only then did Henry registered that the person on the gurney was Shawn.


	10. Turn For The Worse is Not All That Bad

Beth walked out into the waiting room to see a very pale and shaky Henry Spencer trying unsuccessfully to sit down without falling. "Here let me." Henry looked up at her as she grasped him by the elbow and help him sit in the chair.

"_Thanks." _His color was starting to get better and the shakiness was gone. "What happened?"

Beth should've known that Matt didn't have time to tell him. "Shawn's temperature spiked to over 106 and while you couldn't tell by looking at him he was having a pretty severe seizure. Dr. Morris decided that the blankets and chilled IV fluids wasn't enough so we are moving him."

"_To?"_

"Labor and delivery." Beth _almost_ smiled at the mans shocked face. "They have tubs there that we can fill with ice water. I know it seems 1800 ish but it seems like the only choice we have at the moment, seeing as the fever hasn't responded to any medication." She stood and started to walk out of the waiting room. "I would call back his loved ones."

Henry closed his eyes and gathered himself; he had heard that sentence said before, like when his dad was dying. "I will_. Thank you."_

Beth left with a nod and Henry began dialing.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Carlton was _extremely_ sleep deprived but he had charges he had to take care of, in the form of his partner and Guster. He had just dropped off Juliet and was driving toward Gus' home when he heard a phone ringing. Gus was sleeping on the passenger side, cheek pressed against the window and drool making a trail. Carlton looked around for his phone and soon spotted the blackberry. Fumbling with the buttons he answered. "Lassiter."

"_Carlton. I thought I called Gus."_

Carlton recognized the voice on the end and peered at the little screen with read out 'Mr. Spencer' instead of his 'Henry' that he had on his phone. "You did."

"_Then why did you answer?"_

If Carlton could he would have glared. "Guster and I both have Blackberry's."

"_Oh." _

Then a pause.

"_I want to talk to Gus."_

Carlton made a left onto Gus' road. "He's sleeping as you should be. I can take a message for him."

There was a sigh on the other end. "_It's important."_

Carlton stopped in front of Gus' house and tried to keep calm. _What on Earth is so important to wake a man who has been by his sick friend's side all day….Oh. Oh crap!_ "That bad?"

"_Yeah."_

Carlton started the car and pulled away from the little home. "We'll be there in twenty."

Henry hung up with a good-bye or thanks and that suited Carlton just fine as he was trying his damdest to stay awake as he drove back to the hospital. He looked at the man on the passenger side and considered waking him up but after a second thought he decided that the man needed twenty minutes of blissful sleep before he had to visit his dying friend.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Finally after the second dose of Valium the seizure subsided. Matt had the nurses filling the tub and getting all the necessary things ready for immersing a patient with a vent. He sat down on the bed and rubbed at his temples taking note that these Labor and Delivery beds were nicer than the one he had at home. _I wonder if it would look bad if I took a nap?_

"Sorry doc no napping on the job."

He looked up and saw a very amused Beth smiling at him. "That obvious?"

"If you are anywhere near as tired as I am then,_ yeah._ I almost want to ask to scoot over so we can share." Beth closed her mouth with a click and felt her face blush. The other nurses in the room were giving the two small glances and whispering as they prepared the tub and Shawn.

Matt wiggled his eyebrows at her causing Beth to blush even more. "So what other things have you for me besides that _tempting_ offer?"

If looks could kill Matt would have certainly been in the morgue with a toe tag and a sheet over his body. She shoved some papers in his face. "This fax came in from the hospital that did the valve repair, it was the only past medical record we could pinpoint on him, _apparently_ he liked to travel all over." Trying to ignore the whispers and looks of the other nurses she motioned for him to scoot over and sat next to him. "You won't _believe_ why he needed the replacement."

Matt looked over the faxed documents and as he went on further he went from 'really?' to full disbelief. "_You've have got to be kidding me!"___

"Nope."

"Man this guy needs to stay outta the ocean." He handed the papers back to Beth. "You would think getting stung once from an Irukandji would be enough but _twice_!" He stood and paced a bit. "What I don't get is why he didn't know what was happening."

Beth stood and gave him one of her patented looks. "Matt, think about this. When he was stung before it was in Australia but _here?_ Jellyfish are almost unheard of and especially this one." She smacked at his arm. "Now use your oversized brain inside that thick skull of yours and make sure that he survives this sting as well."

"_Doctor? We're ready."_

Matt helped finish preparing for the immersion. "Let's start with cool and then work our temp down, _slowly_."

Beth watched in awe as Matt first settled himself into the cool water and opened his arms wide to receive his patient as the other nurses lifted and then lowered the man into the tub. When Shawn first hit the water he arched a little but Matt was prepared for it and he held him close as if he was a child. Beth came to the side of the tub and whispered into the unconscious man's ear, telling him everything from the weather to the episode of _Grey's_ she watched last night. Shawn seemed to relax at her words and when she started to stroke his hair he relaxed even more. Slowly the nurses began letting out water and added bins of ice.

Matt started shivering a bit. "_We…we must be a sight."_ Beth just smiled and continued her murmuring in Shawn's ear. "_I hope th…this works because I'm free….freezing."_

One of the nurses took Shawn's temperature. "One-oh-one and dropping doctor."

"Despite how silly we look, Matt, this was a good idea."

Matt gave her a shaky thumbs up and smiled at her. Despite the shivering, the patient, and other occupants in the room Beth felt like her and Matt were the only ones there and before she could stop herself she gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"_Way to ke..keep me warm, nurse."_

This time when the whisperings started Beth could've cared less.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Henry was still sitting in the waiting room when Gus and Carlton walking in. "Mr. Spencer?"

Henry's eyes were bloodshot from exhaustion and his caffeine jitters were so bad it looked as though the man was having seizures in his limbs. "_It's not good Gus._" Gus sat next to him and Carlton paced about the room casting them glances and listening in on the conversation. "His fever spiked to one-oh-six and he had a pretty bad seizure, they took him into the back of the hospital where a tub was to try and lower his temp with an ice bath."

"_And?"_

Henry ran a hand down his face and sighed. "And nothing they disappeared almost a half hour ago and I haven't heard a word. The nurse told me to call his loved ones."

Gus shut his eyes and sighed. "I can handle the rest of the phone calls if need be."

Henry gave his arm a squeeze. "Gus you are his closest friend, _hell,_ his best friend. I called Maddie but she didn't answer, it may be days before I can get ahold of her and possibly even longer till she comes here. As of right now, Gus, we are his loved ones."

Gus nodded and sat back in his chair to prepare for the long wait ahead of them, Henry mimicked his posture and closed his eyes to try and get some rest before the doctor came and told them the fate of his son. Carlton stopped his pacing and stepped outside the waiting room because despite what Henry said, Carlton knew that they weren't the only loved ones that Shawn had.

Holding the phone to his ear he heard the sleepy 'hello' on the other end. "Chief, Spencer's taken a change for the worse….."

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Beth walked through the maze of the hospital hallways and was soon in the ICU waiting room, which was filled to capacity. "_Ummmmm….._I need to talk to Henry Spencer."

The man in question stood up and the crowd parted as he walked toward her. "How's Shawn, Nurse?"

Beth smiled because for the first time since Shawn's arrival there was a reason too. "The ice bath worked better than we expected. His temp is down below one hundred, his heart rate has slowed significantly, also. We are preparing him to bring him back to his room. _Hopefully_, since we have the temp lowered it will be easier to keep it low with the cooling blankets." She sighed because there was some bad to go with all this good. "That said, Shawn is still in danger. His heart is holding out and if he continues to get better like this it will hold out. He _will_ still need to have it replaced."

"What about the seizures? He's had two bad ones since he got here."

Beth nodded. "We won't know the full extent of the damage till he wakes up but there is some we can see on the EEG, whether or not it's long term." She shook her head. "That is almost impossible to predict." She gave him a sympathetic look. "Right now I suggest you all get some rest because we have a long road ahead of us." He eyes flicked around the room. "Are all these people here for him."

Henry gave a small laugh as he nodded. "Damn kid knows how to make friends."

Beth matched his smile. "That's good because he is going to need all this help during his recovery. Well I'll leave you to it." She turned and walked away to help transport Shawn.

For the first time in over twelve hours Henry breathed a sigh of relief. _Thank you._ He didn't know who he was thanking but he did this every time Shawn was in the hospital, surly some being was watching over him. Mutely in the background he could hear the news being relayed to the officers that had shown up and he could almost feel the worry wash away from that room. He stepped out of the waiting room and found the nearest window to stare out at the stars.

"Shawn's a fighter. He'll win this fight too." Henry turned and saw a genuine smile on the woman's face.

"He _does_ have so much to fight for." He gave her arm a squeeze and walked away. "Especially friends like you." He smiled as he walked away. "Well _particularly_ you, detective."

Juliet was stunned frozen in front of the window, somewhere in her sleep deprived mind she thought she heard Henry admit how important she was to Shawn. _Win this one Shawn so I can say yes the next time you ask me out. Please win this one._


	11. Waking Up Is Hard To Do

__**A/N: So this is the next to last chapter, which I hope to post on Monday. Enjoy.  
><strong>

_God it's HOT!_ Shawn tried to open his eyes so he could glare at the person who had turn the heat on but his lids refused to come unglued. _Screw it I tell them anyways._ Shawn tried to open his mouth but something was blocking and that something was _in_ his throat. _Oh god! Get it out!_ He was sure he had tried to move his arms to pull it out but it seemed like he failed, seeing as the thing was in his throat still. Now his head was starting to buzz. _What the hell is wrong?_

"DOCTOR! He's seizing!"

Darkness.

Then…voices.

People he didn't know were talking all around him but none to him.

"Doctor we're ready."

_Ready for what?_

_COLD! So VERY Cold!_ _Have to get away…..get away. _Shawn tried to arch his back to get away but whoever had pulled him into this torture of cold water pulled him in close in a giant bear hug.

"We….we must be a sight_."_

Whoever own that voice Shawn was going punch later _but….._

"It's ok we have you. You're going to be just fine. You should see it outside tonight the stars are so clear_…."_

Whoever owned that one was going to get a kiss. The woman kept talking quietly into his ear, he felt his body relaxing and when the owner of the gentle voice began to stroke his head he felt himself drift.

Darkness.

Then light.

Then more voices. These he knew, these he loved.

"Damn kid needs to stay outta the ocean_."_

_You have no idea dad._

"I just hope he wins this."

_Me too buddy, whatever I'm fighting._

"He will Gus, Shawn's a fighter."

_Oh Jules I'll be fine. I promise._

He heard the people leave and someone come close to his bed. "Make O'Hara cry, Spencer and I will kill you myself."

_Oh Lassie, I knew you cared in your own crazy way._

Then he heard the footsteps walk away. He drifted again.

Darkness.

Then hot again.

Rushed voices and people grouping and prodding and moving.

Darkness.

"It's Ok Shawn. You'll be Ok. You've got to be Ok." If Shawn could have smiled he would have as Juliet whispered in his ear and combing her fingers through his hair. "I'm so sorry I left you. I am so sorry."

_Oh Jules I could never be mad at you. In fact, I think….I think I love you. WOW! That was hard to even say in my head._

Darkness.

Light.

More voices, this time clearer.

"He's been threatening to wake up for hours. Damn kid will just keep this up just to torture us."

_Yep. Dad you pegged it. It's not like I have a tube down my throat or anything. And it's not like I'm sick enough to be in the hospital. I'm just doing this to torture you._

Darkness.

Light.

"You better wake up today Shawn, you should see your dad and Gus I had to kick them out so they could get some sleep. I know you're not doing this on purpose but you've been threatening to wake up for going on two days. They say you're so much better so you need to wake up."

_Ok Jules for you I'll wake up. For you._

Shawn fought his eyelids. He cussed them, pled with them, and bargained with them. Then he won, _slowly_.

Eyes fluttering and vision un-blurring he saw the most beautiful angel in the world.

_Jules!_

Her eyes were watering. "Hey Shawn 'bout time."

Shawn tried to raise his hand to wipe the lone tear on her cheek away but his limbs were heavy and he settled for what he hoped was a sympathetic look.

"I'll get the nurse and I have so many people to call."

Juliet left the room hurriedly and then his room was filled with medical personnel.

"Hey Shawn, you had a rough few days there. Would you like that tube out?"

Shawn nodded.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Three hours later all the doctors and nurses had left and the room was filled with friends and family.

"Can…can anyone tell me _exactly _what happened?" He was met with the shocked faces of Gus and his dad, the sympathetic of Karen and Juliet and the glare of Lassiter. Buzz was unreadable as he stood in the corner fielding phone calls from his wife and other officers about his condition.

"You were stung by a jellyfish, kid."

"_Seriously_?"

"Yeah something called an Irukandji, it's tiny but made you awfully sick."

Shawn scoffed. "Not the first time."

Henry sighed. "No, the doctor told us that too."

"How long?"

"Four days but the worst is over."

"_Except…."_

Gus chimed in. "You're going to need your valve replaced."

Shawn groaned and dropped his head back against the pillow. "_Man!"_

Juliet slid her hand under the cooling blanket and grasped his still warm, but no longer hot, hand and squeezed it. "We'll all be here for you." She motioned with her other hand. "_All of us."_ She gave Carlton a pointed glare and he cringed a bit.

"Yeah Spencer, we'll make sure you stay the hell out of the ocean."

Shawn smiled at the clearly uncomfortable detective. Then he looked confused. "How long was I out?"

Buzz hung up the phone, Carlton left the room, Juliet looked like she might cry, and Gus and Henry shared a look. "_What kid?"_

"How long was I out?"

"_Four days_. I told you that already."

Shawn laughed. "_Funny_ dad but you didn't. You told me that I was stung by a jellyfish and I need my heart valve replaced but you didn't tell me how long I was out."

Before Henry could open his mouth Carlton returned with the doctor and a nurse. "Hello Shawn, I'm Dr. Morris and I'm going to take a look at you Ok?"

Shawn nodded and soon the doctor was listening to his lungs and heart. "Shawn I need you to remember three words for me. Can you do that?"

"_Yeah."_

"Ok. They are cat, orange, and pen."

"_Weird but Ok."_ The doctor kept looking over him while the nurse changed the IV and checked his temperature.

"Ninety-nine and steady." Shawn looked over at the blonde headed nurse and felt his mouth crack into a smile.

"I _remember_ you." She looked up. "_Yeah_, you were telling me about the weather and Grey's Anatomy." Her smile matched his. "Thank you?"

"Beth and yeah that was me."

The doctor got his attention. "Shawn, can you tell me those words I asked you to remember earlier?"

Shawn closed his eyes and thought deeply, _deeper_ _than he should have._ "Um…pen…cat….and." Shawn squinted hard and try as he might he couldn't remember the last one. "_I got nothing_."

Matt nodded and smiled. "Well you had two pretty severe seizures because of a high temperature and sometimes there is damage."

Juliet's hand tightened its grip and Shawn could see how worried the others were. "Is it _permanent?"_

Shawn met the doctor's gaze. "It's too soon to tell." He sighed. "And I hate to do this but we need to schedule your surgery to replace your damaged valve."

Shawn closed his eyes and nodded. "Talk to my dad, he'll handle it."

Juliet stayed by his side as the others left the room. Through the glass of the door he could see his dad and Gus talking with the doctor, Carlton pacing trying not to look worried, and Buzz was being, well, Buzz by making phone calls and shooting worried glances into Shawn's room.

"You'll be Ok, Shawn. Everything will be Ok."

Shawn was feeling suddenly tired and all he wanted to do was sleep and in eight hours to wake up from this nightmare. He closed his eyes and leaned into her touch as she stroked his hairline. Normally he wouldn't allow for anyone to mess with is hair, but this was _Jules_. "_Thank you _for being there, _for being here._ You know I remember you doing this while I was out."

Juliet gasped and was quickly smiling. Shawn drifted off to sleep as she stroked his hairline and whispered into his ear. "You're going to be fine. You'll be just fine."

_I hope so, Jules. I hope so._

__**I want to thank all the reviewers and people who have added this for alerts, you blew my phone up. I love it!  
><strong>


	12. Epilogue

_****_**A/N:This puppy is now done! Woot woot.**

_**Three Weeks Later…**_

Shawn was finally being wheeled out of this place he had been forced to call home for almost two months. "God the sun feels so good."

The blonde headed woman who was pushing him agreed wholeheartedly. "Sure does." She hummed as she took in some of the rays. Just outside the hospital entrance the wheelchair was stopped and the pair waited. "I hope you never have to come back to this place again."

Shawn smiled. "Me too, Jules, me too."

"Shawn I want to talk to you about what happened."

Shawn met her gaze. "_Jules." _He cupped her jaw with his hand. "_It's Ok."_

Juliet shook her head. "No it's not Shawn, you almost died because I was too focused on something stupid." Shawn put his arm back down. "I….I am the worst person ever."

"No you're not Jules, you're the reason I woke up."

Juliet couldn't hide the surprised gasp and under Shawn's scrutinizing stare she felt her cheek redden. Standing up she looked around the parking lot. "I wonder what's taking your dad so long?"

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Henry was watching as Shawn and Juliet talked when his phone rang. Henry looked at the caller ID expecting it to be Gus to remind him for the umpteenth time where Shawn's meds were being filled and where to reach him at but Henry was pleasantly surprised. "Karen, how are you?"

"_I was just about to ask you the same, it's been a long six weeks, hasn't it?"_

"Yep."

"_How's Shawn?"_

Henry smiled as he watched Shawn cup Juliet's jaw. "His memory is getting better, but it's a slow process. His heart valve took wonderfully; I was just about to get him loaded up to take him home."

"_That's all good and I hope his memory gets better soon, otherwise his 'psychic' abilities may not work as they once did."_

Henry was a little shocked by what Karen just admitted, but not really all that surprised. "I'm sure it will Karen. I'm sure it will."

"_Goodbye Henry."_

"Bye Karen."

He chuckled as he started up the truck and began to pull it around.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Mike watched as his patient was being loaded into his father's truck. "He's a tough one."

He reached out his hand and grasped Beth's. "He sure is Beth. I just hope we don't see him in here again."

Beth shrugged. "I don't know if it wasn't for him we wouldn't have decided to throw rationality away."

Mike looked up and down the corridor and pulled her in close, his lips brushed against hers. "Thank God for that."

Beth smiled and broke the hug to look out the window. She spotted Juliet give Shawn's arm a squeeze and then watch the truck pull away. "I hope they figure _it_ out."

"Figure _what_ out?"

Beth pointed at the now lone woman who was clearly wiping tears from her face as she watched the truck pull away. "How much they really care for each other."

"I'm sure they will and hopefully they won't wait five years to act on it."

Beth brushed his hair back a bit. "_I don't know,_ the wait made the result so much sweeter." Mike pulled her back in for another kiss.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Carlton looked around the station and for the first time in weeks he could feel the mood had lightened. He would never admit it but he was glad that Shawn had survived the jellyfish sting and the subsequent heart surgery. Sighing as he sat down he decided to do some of Juliet's paper, seeing as she was going to help the elder Spencer get Shawn settled. Opening drawers in his desk to find a pen he came across a box with his name on it, well his nickname.

_To: Lassie_

_Thanks man._

_H&K's: Your favorite Psychic._

Carlton was a little curious how the gift had gotten into his desk but he paid it no mind as he opened the white box and slipped the gift out. He damn near dropped it when it landed in his hands; somehow the pain-in-his-ass had gotten a snow globe made with little jellyfish and a surfboard with a little Shawn on it with a speech bubble that said '_Ouch.'_

"Are you freakin' kidding me?" He slammed his desk drawer shut and making sure no one was looking he opened another drawer and placed the snow globe next to another one he had been given years earlier.

**A/N: Now to work on Word Really Do Hurt.**


End file.
